Delay in tipping

TIPPING delays at grain merchants Soufflets Southampton terminal could lead to delays in grain leaving farms.

Some faced eight-hour waits for a single tip and queues of up to 50 lorries built up late last week. "In 27 years of haulage, Ive never seen anything like it," said one disgruntled operator. "Theyve got just one guy running the weighbridge and the sampling. When he goes to the loo, everything stops."

Soufflet commercial director, Graham Hopton explained that normally there were two men on duty and delays were unusual.

He blamed the concentrated harvest period and the lack of freight. "If a vessel is late, it leads to blockages and this has not been helped by the biggest harvest trade weve seen in years."

The terminal has already shifted 120,000t of grain compared with 290,000t for the whole of last season. See page 21.